College Life
Part 13: The dog house
by Greenbeans
with Lord Charon
I'd like to thank Lord Charon right off the bat here
since he did contribute to this story and was a big
motivator for me. Thanks also go out to Jackie
Chiang and Tim Nolan for motivation, proof reading,
and putting up with me.
Mild cursing
Comments, thoughts, complaints, compliments, ramblings,
and flames are all accepted. But the latter two stand a
serious chance of being printed out and turned into rat
cage lining.
All characters are property of their respective holders.
I belong to myself, thank you, and have a nice day :)
********** Sunday evening **********
Michiru leaned her chin against the soft white
cloth. Slowly she drew her bow across the belly
of the violin. The instrument let out a low mellow
tone as its master dictated. The song was quiet,
barely above a whisper, but it did not remain that
way.
The tempo increased as did the volume of the once
lovely piece. The work soon acquired a sharper edge.
Notes cut through the surrounding silence. The
violin faithfully echoed the emotions of its master.
Michiru was angry, but not solely angry, also lonely.
Frustrated might be better word for what she was
feeling.
'Where is Haruka?' It was figuratively asked since
she knew exactly where her partner was. She was with
that James fellow working on their motorcycles.
The violin screamed its song now.
Haruka had called earlier in the evening to ask if it
was okay for her to miss dinner tonight. She had been
gladdened that Haruka called her, but not at the reason
why. Of course Haruka could stay out with James. She
had no control over the stubborn woman; well, not in
those regards.
The meal she had prepared for the evening chilled on
the stove.
Michiru put down the victim of her emotions. It was
already past 10pm, and she hadn't come home yet. Why
wasn't Haruka here with her, where she wanted her?
Couldn't Haruka see how she felt about the growing
pattern of late night work sessions? Didn't Haruka
realize that she didn't like the idea of her spending
more time with James than her?
She put her instrument away for the evening, making
sure that the bow had a light coating of rosin, ready
for its next use. It was late, and she had classes in
the morning. She tied her hair up before stretching
herself out onto the bed. She rolled over to look at
the empty pillow beside her.
Another lonely night not spent in Haruka's arms.
********** Monday **********
"You look like you've been whapped upside the head
with a two by four," I commented as I set my tray onto
the table across from Haruka.
"I didn't get much sleep last night," she admitted.
That would explain the bags under her eyes and the
droopy look all about her.
"Oh? What's up?" I asked concerned. If Haruka
needed my help, I would certainly offer it to her.
"I stayed up too late working on my motorcycle with
James at his place," she grinned sheepishly. "But
it purrs so sweetly now."
"You think that was a good idea?" I took a sip of
soda.
"What? Staying up too late? It seemed like a good
idea at the time..." she shrugged.
"Well, there is that," I began slowly. "What time
did you get home to Michiru?"
"3am, and what does it matter?" She asked
defensively. "I'm a big girl now. I can stay out
late if I want to."
I nodded. "That's true, but I've noticed that you've
been spending a lot of time with James lately.
Perhaps you should spend a few quality nights with
Michiru and forget about the bike?"
Haruka got that damn cocky look to her that meant she
was about to make some witty retort. I bit into my
sandwich and waited for my blood to boil.
"What's wrong, Beans? Jealous that I don't spend as
much time with you as I used to?"
I chewed my sixty odd times before finally
swallowing. "Yes, Haruka, I am jealous," I replied
sarcastically. "And if I'm jealous, Michiru must be
also," I added pointedly.
She smirked at me. I groaned inwardly. She had
missed the point.
"Don't worry about me, Beans. Everything is fine
between myself and Michiru."
I got up from the table. I had class soon. "I hope
so, Haruka, I really do."
*****
Haruka watched Beans leave the cafeteria.
She was insane and making something of nothing.
Michiru wasn't jealous of James. They were just
friends! He knew a lot about bikes and she respected
his knowledge. Michiru had always encouraged her to
pursue her love of machines in the past. Why would
now be any different?
Haruka sat through humanities while still mulling
over Beans words, not really considering them for
having any truth.
She huffed about the school the entire day like that.
Those around her allowed her a wider berth than usual.
Why did Beans have to get this idea stuck in her head?
Michiru wasn't jealous... Michiru was above jealousy.
*****
Michiru sat at the dinner table alone tonight. Haruka
had called her earlier in the evening to say that she
would be at James' working on their bikes.
'Is that fine with you, Michiru?' she had asked.
'Yes, that's fine.' The dinner she had prepared for
the two of them sat on the stove cooling.
'Thank you, Michiru.'
'Haruka,' the phone hung up before she could finish,
'I love you...'
********** Tuesday **********
Haruka walked into the library. Walking besides her
was James, whom she was obviously well into a
discussion with.
I looked up and grimaced as I realized that Haruka
really hadn't taken to mind what I had gone over.
Michiru knew that Haruka wasn't interested, but did
James? They were too firm a couple for him to break
apart, but he could make things uncomfortable.
I chewed on a pencil thoughtfully for a few seconds
as I pondered this new line. If I was right, then I
had some work to do before I could confront him about
his new pal. Hmm... maybe Andy would know something.
The more I looked over at the chatting pair, the more
the worries rankled at me. Haruka couldn't be *this*
thick, could she? She'd been with Michiru for a long
time! Didn't she see how something like this might
hurt her?Frustrated, I picked up my books and headed
for my room.
Dammit, no, Haruka wasn't thick, she'd just focused
on a project and lost sight of other things. Perhaps
she had done this before and Michiru would be used to
it. It was a lame excuse.
I debated the possibility of disabling Haruka's bike,
but quickly saw the error in my logic. Do something
like that, and she would be even more bent on getting
it fixed.
Hum... I could offer to help her out, then maybe she
would get over that bike fascination quicker. Except,
I really didn't know anything about bikes. Keeping my
car on the road was a challenge at times.
The phone rang.
"Hello? Is Beans there?" It was Michiru.
"Moshi moshi, Michiru-san," I greeted cheerfully. She
didn't sound happy. Not really sad, but it wasn't her
usual politely modest tone either.
"Ara," she chuckled lightly. That reassured me some.
"I need to know how many tickets you wanted to the
concert on Wednesday?"
I read between the lines. That wasn't the reason she
had called me, but it was a good place to start a
conversation.
"Ah, so your school is going to finally give us the
concert promised in payment of networking everything,"
I said slyly, trying to coax another chuckle out of
her.
"It hasn't been that long," she defended the jibe
easily. "Well?"
I thought about it. "Honestly, I'll have to get back
to you on it Michiru. I need to ask everyone and see
who can make it."
"I see," she responded.
We didn't speak for several moments.
"Is there anything else I can do for you, Michiru?" I
prompted.
"Oh, no, that's everything. Thank you, Beans," she
hung up.
I shook my head. "'Curiouser and curiouser,'" I
quoted as I settled down to study.
*****
Haruka went straight home after school today. James
had replaced a fellow on the night crew, so he
couldn't work with her tonight. She took a quick
shower before seating herself at the kitchen table.
Michiru finished the touches on the bowl of rice. She
calmly set the soy sauce bottle down, then placed the
bowl onto the table.
Haruka immediately picked up a serving spoon and
shoveled rice onto her plate before pouring liberal
amounts of soy sauce onto it. It was only after she
had put a wedge of rice into her mouth that she
realized that Michiru had already put sauce on the
rice.
Haruka looked over at the serving bowl, where she
could faintly make out a few words in Hiragana. But
they couldn't be words! Michiru would never say that
to her!
[An Ukyo moment for sure ;)]
Haruka looked up at Michiru. Michiru was carefully
chewing on a mouthful of rice and chicken, looking
down at the table and very obviously not at Haruka.
Something clicked in her mind, and she scooted over
next to Michiru. She felt her turquoise-haired
partner tense up immediately. Ignoring this, she
reached over behind Michiru's head and pulled her
into a warm and very intense kiss.
Michiru's mind exploded in a maelstrom of emotions.
First and foremost, this was what she had been longing
for during the last week. Haruka had been spending
too much time with other projects as of late, and she
wanted her share of the attention.
Haruka tickled her in the ribs. She picked Michiru up
and headed to the bedroom. Just before entering,
Haruka reached for the hallway light switch, and the
house was swathed in darkness (and the author sidesteps
a mushy scene ;)
********** Wednesday **********
Haruka and I were sitting in the lounge, desperately
trying to get through a set of Calculus problems. Or
rather, I was desperately trying to get through a set
of problems, while Haruka was sitting back in her seat,
grimacing. It took a few minutes, but eventually I
managed to finish it.
Today's subject of teasing wasn't going to be math or
Andy, apparently. Instead, she chose to get after me
for other problems.
"I noticed you were sitting awfully close to the book
there, Mame-chan," she snickered, deliberately tacking
on the -chan to annoy me. "Perhaps you need some
glasses?"
"Bah!" I growled at her. "I can see just fine. It's
just the glare from the lights is worse if I don't
stay in close to the book, setting my shadow over it."
(Greenbeans note: [pointed glare at Lord Charon] You
had to toss that in, didn't you?)
Haruka grinned at me, and I could tell that she thought
she had won this one. I decided to prove her wrong.
"You seem to be getting a little bit thicker around the
waist." She was wearing a button-up shirt which was
tied off above her belly. "Maybe you've not been
putting in enough time in the gym?"
[Eyebrow twitch]
"You're wrong there, Beans, and besides, you're a fine
one to be talking about getting exercise with all the
time you spend in front of your computer." The subtle
signs that she was displaying belied her casual words,
and I could see that I had struck deep. Time to twist
the knife home.
"Yeah, but at least I have the excuse of a computer.
You," I lowered my voice, "are supposed to be this fit,
trim, world famous driver. How are you going to fit
into your car if you're bringing a spare tire with you,
eh?" I poked her belly.
Her eyes widened slightly, then narrowed. I nearly
fell over laughing. I had gotten her there!
However, before she could have a chance to retaliate,
I looked up at the clock. "Whoops! We've gotta hurry
if we're going to get good seats for Michiru's
performance." I quickly grabbed my papers, threw them
into my bag with my book, and made my hasty retreat
from the lounge.
*****
Flying around a corner in a hurry, I bumped into
a techie whose name I wasn't sure of. Dave? Dan?
Anyway, he spoke up. "We *finally* got the cable
finished, Beans," he said. "And just in time, too.
I don't know about you, but I don't want to miss the
concert! I gotta go now, get cleaned up. See you
there!"
He flew off before I could say anything, leaving me
a little breathless. 'When did *this* tornado get
here?' I asked myself. Shrugging, I went up to the
dorms for a quick shower and to get dressed.
My roomies were going to the concert. Andy would
stop by to escort me there. I grinned at the thought.
Things between him and me were developing quite nicely.
It embarrassed us both at the beginning, but we had
moved past the 'uncomfortable' stage to just enjoying
spending time with each other.
To the dismay of many, tonight's event was a
semi-formal one. Once again the techies had to put
forth their best imitations of 'formal wear.' Many
of the fellows had taken this opportunity to ask the
ladies they had been watching to the concert.
In a group that more resembled a herd, we all walked
down to the concert. As a group, we took over the
first few rows of the auditorium, which Haruka had
saved for us.
Haruka sat in the front row aisle seat in the tux I
recognized as being the one from the ball last term.
She had a single yellow rose in her lap (thanks Tim ;)
Seated next to her was James in a suit. I took the
seat next to James with Andy besides me.
The rest of the group spread out from there. Some
had brought flowers to toss up on the stage. No one
expected anything of it other than the thrill of
never being to a 'formal event' like this before and
getting to do it at least once in their life.
I sat back in my seat and relaxed. I placed my right
hand on the arm rest. Hesitantly at first, but then
with more confidence, Andy took my hand and held it
gently. My heart raced at his daring.
He glanced over at me with a mixture of question and
assurance. I smiled softly at him before squeezing
his hand some. He sighed happily and smiled back at
me.
*****
Michiru finished tuning her violin. She was one of
the last to perform tonight since she was a 'featured
performer.'
She let her thoughts drift. Leaning back in her
chair, she closed her eyes to focus upon the task
before her. But her mind refused to stay true to its
purpose. It reflected back to recent times.
How their tune had changed since the Phillips incident.
The students were wary of her for the most part, but
this didn't bother her. She was used to standing on
her own. The Administration treated her differently
in that they were careful not to push her too far. It
was something that was only noticed when one looked
beneath the cheery hello's, but was nonetheless there.
"Ms. Kaioh, you're on in 5," a page came to her
dressing room. Had she really spent that much time
thinking about that?
No matter. She straightened her skirts before
walking to the off stage area. She glance about the
crowd to find Haruka as she always did. She spotted
her in the first row.
Then she saw whom she was seated besides. She looked
further over to see Beans besides James, with Andy
next to her. Why couldn't they sit between James and
Haruka!?
She flushed slightly at her sudden burst of jealousy.
Michiru continued to watch. James and Haruka weren't
engaged in any conversation. That was good at least.
She chuckled when she saw Andy's nervousness at taking
hold of Beans' hand. They really were a cute couple.
Her cue was given. She walked out onto the stage to
thunderous applause. She was the person a large
portion of the audience had come to see tonight. It
had been no few tickets she had given to Beans.
Michiru glowed for the compliment they paid her. A
bundle of roses were tossed up onto the stage. She
chuckled as a group of 'gentlemen' nipped at each
other for tossing them before the performance. She
couldn't hear their words, but their antics spoke
loudly enough with those around them becoming
increasingly aggrivated.
She walked over to the roses, smelled them, then tossed
them back to the young men. They caught the bundle
mid-air. After smiling and blushing for a few seconds,
they were pulled back into their seats by those
behind them.
She began to enchant her audience. With her eyes closed,
she could almost feel the wonder and admiration the
audience was currently experiencing. She pulled them
close to her, then out again, much like a child playing
with a kite.
This was what she enjoyed.
The song ended with the auditorium exploding into a roar
of applause. Flowers flew up onto the stage. They
scattered around her feet. She walked over and picked
up the rose that was from Haruka before smiling and
exiting the stage.
As she left, she saw James lean over to speak with
Haruka. The jealously welled up within her again.
*****
We had decided the other night to try the double date
thing again with Haruka and Michiru. I'm relieved to
say that things went much better this time. No flaming
bread baskets or spilled water. In fact, it was a
comfortable evening for us all.
Almost.
Andy had settled down, but I could sense a tenseness
about Haruka and Michiru. I don't know what it was.
They acted perfectly fine with Haruka grinning and
cracking the occasional joke. Michiru was her polite
self while sitting quietly, sipping on her wine.
Perhaps that was it. She was quieter than usual. It
seemed as though she was studying Haruka almost...
expecting something to go wrong... Augh, I don't
know. It just wasn't right.
There was nothing I could do since it wasn't my
problem. I cared about what happened to both of them,
but it was just not my place.
So I laughed, I ate, and pretended like nothing was
wrong.
********** Thursday **********
I stuck my head out into the hallway to make sure the
coast was clear. No one was around. I slung the
heavy net bag full of my dirty laundry over my
shoulder and proceeded to the laundry room.
Really, I don't care if people see my dirty clothes.
I've lost my sense of modesty in those regards after
half the people in the dorms had seen me in my
flannel pajamas. I just didn't want to hurt anyone
by slamming into them with the over full sack.
The laundry was placed onto the ground with a thud,
and I dug into my pockets for the precious quarters
that would keep me in clean clothing for the next
week.
All I had was bills.
"Doesn't that figure," I said with disgust. I walked
over the change machine but the rotten thing wouldn't
accept my crisp $1's. I resisted the urge to kick the
machine and opted to visit the snack stand instead.
They weren't supposed to give out quarters, but I could
sweet talk them into it.
I bit back a curse at seeing the bright red 'CLOSED'
sign in the window.
"Why does this always happen to me?" I leaned my head
on the door before trudging back to the laundry room.
I carried the sack back up to my room in defeat. I
would have to do laundry later when I had some quarters.
The idea struck me that there was a change machine in
the Student Union by the arcade machines. I could hit
it up for the quarters that I needed.
"Hey, Beans!" Haruka greeted me from across the room.
I waved at her politely as I approached her, for she
was standing next to the holy change machine.
She turned to the machine to stick a bill in when I
neared. She got her quarters and walked over to her
favorite victim.
I slipped my bill into the slot. The 'OUT OF SERVICE'
light flicked to life.
"What?!?!" I hit the machine in frustration. "At least
give me my dollar back!!!!"
"Problems?" Haruka called over.
"All I want is to do my laundry," I griped while kicking
the machine for eating my dollar.
"Oh? Work off some frustration and race me," she
invited with an evil gleam to her eyes.
I walked over to the racing game. "If I had any quarters
I wouldn't be beating on that damn machine."
"Don't worry about it," she put another quarter into
the slot. "C'mon, I want to race you."
"Fine," I took up the player 2 position. The game
started. I tried to not pay attention to what Haruka
was doing, but I did know she was in the lead.
"You'll never beat me if you take it high in the
corners," she taunted as she tried to lap me on the
inside track.
I neatly blocked her off before jetting down the
straight-away. "Better position for the straight-aways
than the lower track," I countered, and I resisted her
attempts to pass me.
She chuckled as she finally lapped me.
"Face it, you just aren't as good as me," she flashed
her winning smile.
I was in no mood for it. "Yeah, say, do you have 3
quarters? I need to do my laundry."
She shook her head. "Sorry, only 2. The other 2 were
to play the game."
I sighed. "Thanks any ways." My search for quarters
continued.
*****
Haruka closed the door to the garage quietly behind her.
It had been another late night with James, but she was
so close to being done. She smiled in the darkness at
her sense of accomplishment for the night's work.
Michiru would be in bed this hour. Given the choice of
her making the noise of taking a shower or going to bed
smelling like a grease monkey, Michiru would prefer the
shower. She went into the bathroom to rinse off another
result of her day's labors.
Michiru had laid out her night clothes on the counter by
the sink. It was thoughtful of her to have the foresight
to do so. She would have to be certain to thank her.
She grinned.
Dressed and ready for bed, she walked down the hall to
the room she shared with Michiru. She placed her hand
upon the doorknob and twisted. But the knob didn't
twist and the door didn't open. It was locked?!
She hadn't realized the door even had a lock on it.
She tried again just in case the door was simply being
difficult.
No, it was locked.
She knocked lightly on the door. "Michiru? The door
is locked, will you let me in?"
No answer.
She knocked (pounded) on the door to no avail. Was
Michiru alright? She strode out into the living room
to think about what she should do when she noticed a
pillow and blanket neatly placed on the end of the
couch.
"Baka..." she whispered to herself. Michiru was fine.
She was the one with the problem.
She resigned herself to her current situation and
stretched out onto the couch for the evening.
'At least she isn't making you sleep in the garage,'
she chided herself. But if she didn't reconcile
quick, that was where she may end up next.
*********** Friday **********
"Haruka? You look like you're in pain?" Haruka sat
across from Beans this morning. Beans was catching
an early breakfast, and she was here already.
Usually she didn't see Beans 'til mid morning.
"Just a crink in my neck," she rolled her head from
side to side.
"Ow," Beans sympathized. "So why are you here so
early?"
"Oh, nothing much really," she skirted before deciding
on a line that would be believable. "Michiru wasn't
feeling well this morning so I decided to come to
school early and give her some peace and quiet."
That was almost true. Michiru's recent behavior
certainly wouldn't count as the norm. She woke up
early this morning to find a set of clothes sitting
in front of the door for her to wear.
She could take a hint.
"Haruka?" Beans waved a hand in front of her face.
"Are you sure you're okay? I've been talking for 5
minutes, and I doubt you heard a word of it."
She blushed. "I'm afraid that's true. I'm sorry,
what were you saying again?"
Beans shook her head. "It wasn't that important.
You look like you need some more sleep. If you
want to come up to my room this afternoon and count
a few sheep, go for it."
"Thanks, I may take you up on it."
*****
Haruka entered the silent house. Michiru was still
in classes. She needed a way to convince Michiru of
her sincerity, and there was only way she could
think of off hand.
She went to their bedroom and dug out a leather
bound volume from the sock drawer. She flipped
through the pages until she found the one she wanted.
A yellow rose that she had brought with her was
placed to mark the page. The volume was placed on
Michiru's pillow.
She packed an overnight bag for herself. With the
bag slung over her shoulder, she relocked the door,
and left.
*****
"No, I don't mind if Haruka sleeps in our bed this
evening, Beans, but why?" Alex was packing her
clothes for their habitual exodus on weekends.
I shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. She just asked
if she could spend the night since you and Jeff would
be gone. I said sure."
"Well," she buckled up her bag, "have fun!" She
hugged me briefly before leaving for the weekend.
*****
Michiru set her book bag down on the bed before
she noticed the book laying on her pillow. She
recognized it immediately as Haruka's journal.
Whenever she would catch Haruka writing in it, she
would shut it abruptly and later put it into the
sock drawer.
She had never asked Haruka what she wrote about, nor
did she ever expect to find out. Every person had
their private thoughts, if she wanted to note them
down, it wasn't her business.
Michiru picked the small book up and opened the page
that was marked by a yellow rose. Obviously Haruka
wanted her to read this entry.
1:37am January 28th
How do I tell her how I feel?
All my life I have hidden away my heart,
protecting it from the dangers of deep emotion.
But she found my heart
when I thought it so far buried it was beyond recovery.
Even by me.
She dug deeper than others had.
Many thought they had the key,
but the key crumbled in their hand.
She unlocked the door to my heart,
and revealed the open void that lay there.
Empty, alone, waiting.
Never would I have expected to find one such as her,
as fair as her.
Once she captured my heart,
I will never let her go!
'A jealous lover' does not describe
the possessive desire within me.
A desire shared.
I have given myself to one,
and I will not allow any other to have her.
I have never felt this way about anyone before,
nor will I feel it for anyone else.
The aroused emotions within me burn with such intensity
as to set my heart aflame.
Every part of me longs for her.
Like the sea she personifies,
she had worn through the walls erected around my heart
to engulf the essence of my soul.
How is it that I am so fortunate to have my soul in heaven
while still being amongst the living?
Never will I allow my soul to be ejected from this paradise.
It is where I want to be and where I will fight to stay!
A tear dropped onto the open page. She wiped it away,
but the ink was smeared some. This was written on her
birthday.
She read and reread the entry. Every time her throat
caught on the last stanza. It was so easy to say
that Haruka loved her... to take it for granted.
But this help to reaffirm the feeling within her and
feed the longing she felt for the tall woman.
The phone rang.
She placed the journal carefully onto the bed before
answering. It was Beans.
"Michiru? I'm glad I caught you. Um..." She paused.
"I wanted to let you know that Haruka asked to spend
the night at my room tonight. And...
well, it's not my business, but I'm concerned about
you two," she finished in a rush.
Michiru smiled slightly. "Everything is fine, Beans.
I know things may have seemed rocky for a bit, but
they are fine now. When you see Haruka, will you tell
her to come home?"
"Eh? Come home, right, I'll tell her. I'm glad to
hear everything is all right." She hung up.
Michiru returned to their room and placed the rose in
a vase on the dresser. She then placed the journal
back into the sock drawer. Haruka had allowed her to
read an entry, and she would never betray that trust
by reading further than intended.
*****
"Haruka," James caught up with the tall woman. "Want
to go work on the bikes some tonight?"
She stopped walking to answer him. "Can't, I have a
date tonight. I've decided to put my bike in the
garage for a while. I need to refocus on some other
things. See ya."
She continued walking down the hallway.
********** End part 13 *********
Before anyone goes off and writes me saying 'it's about
time!', I'll answer you here. You're right, it was
about time. Thank you all for your patience.
Also, before anyone asks 'when will 14 be out?', I'll
again answer now. When it's done I'll put it out
(what a cop out answer, ne?). But the title will be
'Welcome to the farm' if that gets your imaginations
spinning at all.
I don't want to give anyone the wrong idea by having
Haruka and Michiru having a spat in this episode. I
truly believe that they would never break up over
something like this. But I also believe that all
lovers have their off days ^_-
Again, thanks to Lord Charon, Tim Nolan, Jackie
Chiang, A Sailormoon Romance, the sites that post this
fic, and y'all for reading it ^_^